Television

Author to talk about life in women's prison

Piper Kerman, author of "Orange is the New Black," a memoir about her year in women's prison.

Piper Kerman, the inspiration for Netflix's award-winning series "Orange Is the New Black," is now a celebrity prison-reform activist. She'll be in town to speak about both the show and the issue this week.

Kerman will speak at Lone Tree Arts Center May 22 at 7:30 p.m.; the show returns for season 2 on June 6.

The series adheres to the basics of her book, following a self-proclaimed affluent WASP through the character-defining realities of prison life. In lectures, Kerman discusses "why I thought it was important to write about it, the underlying issues, the show and the process of the show," she said by phone this week from New York. She serves as a consultant on the TV adaptation by Jenji Kohan ("Weeds") that won a Peabody Award.

Season 2 is a bit darker. "Obviously prison is not a happy place to live even though the show uses humor to analyze prison and bring those characters to life," she said. "There will still be plenty of humor, but those serious issues are more front and center."

For her, "it's a little surreal sometimes to watch a scene that was very traumatic, played for humor. But it helps the audience to stay with it."

On prison reform, "The pendulum is swinging in the right direction after a period of about 30 years," she said. "The public and lawmakers are taking a long, hard look at what doesn't work. I'm very optimistic."

Colorado is "a particularly fascinating place on these issues," she said. The state has made "some very progressive moves over the years to improve the system," notably the legalization of marijuana, she says.

Fans know time has moved on for the real-life Piper, who has lived in Brooklyn since 1998. "Larry Smith and I are about to celebrate our eighth wedding anniversary, I'm working on some new writing projects. I look forward to writing another book, most certainly not a memoir."